Dark Angel
by Amegakure no Kunoichi
Summary: In the six years that she has been contracted to Emily Lunaris, Stellaria has never faced anything more dangerous than a baker with a rolling pin. Now she is faced with the challenge of a lifetime, keep the demonic Butler of the Phantomhive family from knowing what she is and his bratty contract from making her charges life a living hell. Should be easy right?


On the outskirts of London there lies a mansion wrapped in mystery and intrigue. Its owner is the talk of the town but only if you listen carefully. Rats whisper in dark alleys while sly foxes and snarling cats meet for secret rendezvous under broken streetlamps or swathed in the fog of cigar smoke. All speak in fear of his name but speak of the devil and he shall come, the Queen's Watchdog.

Yet whispers now ran rampant through the lighter side of London, for the Earl had put out an advertisement, an offer of a job at his mansion. Everyone had believed that the Earl had a way of scouting for employees, that he would magically reach out his hand and pluck some lucky person from the streets and into the mystery that was the Phantomhive manor. But there is was as plain as the nose on everyone's faces, an advertisement for a job as a maid. Naturally hundreds of young women flocked to the manor in the hope that they would be chosen, but so far none had managed to pass muster. Rumors spread of ridiculous interviews and scandalous pleas but that did not deter the flow of women.

It was a very hot day in June and the females who had come to the slaughter erm interviews for the day bravely tried to wave away the heat as it made any attempt at looking decent futile. In the middle of the line of females was a pair that did not seem bothered the least by the heat. The taller of the two had fashioned a small parasol out of the morning paper which she handed to the smaller, causing a giggle and quiet thanks. They were sisters, well known around town for the number of jobs that they had taken and the bad luck that seemed to follow them and kick them back out. There had been the jealous baker, the peeping librarian, the bullying newsies, the scary secretaries, and a particularly viscous cook. Yet here the girls were, trying their luck yet again. Because of their reputation of back luck the other ladies did not feel that they were a threat, and as such, ignored them.

Stellaria Lunaris, the elder of the two, looked around at their surroundings and sighed. "Are you sure that you want to do this love?" Her younger sister, Emily, looked up at her from under the newspaper parasol and grinned.

"Of course I'm sure! You've heard all of the rumors Sis it's supposed to be paradise to work for a noble. Lord Phantomhive is sure to give us the job after tasting your baking."

"The ad is for a maid not a baker love." Stellaria smiled softly at her pouting charge and scanned the grounds once more, searching. Something wasn't right. Her skin tingled as she once again felt a residual aura sweep past her. _A large male, higher level and powerful. Oh this is going to be_ fun. "Love?"

"Hm? What is it Sis?" Emily looked up at her sister with pure adoration shining through her eyes. Stellaria grimaced at the pure cuteness being directed at her but pushed on.

"It seems that I'm not the only supernatural being in this area." Emily paled and pressed closer to her sister's skirts.

"Is it one of the other candidates?"

"No, it's definitely male, a strong one too. He's probably one of the servants under the Earl, unless the lord has been switched or possessed by one."

"Is he dangerous?"

"Only if he detects me and finds me to be a threat. Don't worry, I'm hiding my aura." Stellaria gave Emily and comforting squeeze and resumed her scan of the crowd. As Emily's contracted demoness, it was her job to protect her contract from all threats, especially from those of her own species. Stepping into a male's territory could easily be the end of her if she doesn't play her cards like. Most males of the demonic variety are like cats in that they will mark every inch of their territory that they can. The Phantomhive grounds reeked of the male's aura, as if every leaf and blade of grass had been marked and from what she could sense, it seemed that every brick of the mansion had been marked as well. The only good thing about males' catlike tendencies is that, like tigers and other big cats, females are usually allowed to pass freely from territory to territory without fear of being mauled, but the key word there is 'usually'. _Usually_ demons didn't make contracts with children but there was one in the manor of the child lord and here she stood with her own child contract.

For once in the six long years as Emily's 'older sister,' Stellaria was hoping with all her heart that they would not be successful in getting the job. She could already feel the slight drain from trying to keep her own demonic aura invisible to the resident evil. It had been a long time since her last decent meal and while her contract with Emily had been relatively easy, Stellaria could feel herself reaching her limit. Demons didn't exactly die of starvation, it was more a case of being skewered and killed by a Reaper like a spear fisher. When a demon reached their limit they lost all sense of self, all knowledge of who they were. They were no better than a wild beast and nothing could slake their hunger. Demon children were told bedtime stories of demons who had passed their limit and gone of wild rampages that always ended with them losing their head to a reaper. There was no return from that state and Stellaria would prefer to not experience it thank you very much.

Hours passed and the pair moved slowly up the line, Emily eating the small sandwiches that her sister had packed for her. As the sun began to creep dangerously close to the horizon, the sisters found themselves at the back entrance to the manor (since the women who were visiting were applying for a job at the manor, social rules dictated that they enter at the rear entrance). They had just begun to take deep breathes to calm their nerves when a resounding BOOM came from the room in front of them. Not thinking of how her actions might be seen as unladylike, Stellaria wrapped her arms around her sister and yanked her away from the door, covering Emily's smaller body with her own larger one. Slow clapping reached her ears and Stellaria quickly brought both herself and Emily up to face the newcomer.

"Well, well, well, it seems that we've finally found someone who may actually meet my lord's standards."

Stellaria looked up to meet a pair of eyes as red as her own and suppressed a shudder. _Well, I guess I found the other demon._


End file.
